Internet series offers the germ of a sitcom

In "Good Deeds and the Damage Done," heaven and hell fight for custody of a recently departed, good-intentioned soul whose good deeds, unfortunately, end in misery for those around him.

What started as a short film for Sleepy Hollow native Avery Auer has been expanded into a Web series after it won third place in YouTube's Project: Direct, an international film competition co-sponsored by YouTube, the Sundance Film Festival and MovieFone.

"[The win] gave me a lot of optimism for the future of this project, so we decided to make it into a series," says Auer, 37.

The second installment debuts Thursday on GoodDeedsDamageDone.com.

Auer says she hopes a network will pick the series up as a sitcom.

She describes her hapless main character, Earnest Prat (played by Payton Ware), as "Earl Hickey meets Michael Scott meets Mr. Bean meets Everyman," referencing main characters in "My Name is Earl" and "The Office," among others.

"It's about all of us," Auer says. "We all go through life trying to do the best we possibly can, but the results aren't always what we intend them to be."

Auer has written synopses for 10 five-minute episodes, which will be directed by Joe Pascual, who also directed the short. She says the series is "largely based on my own personal experience."

So, is the project her attempt to make amends for good intentions gone awry?

"Not exactly to make amends," Auer says. "But to help people understand where I'm coming from and the struggles we all face."